You ask, I'll answer set 7

*What's for dinner?
Posted by: RickyG |

Rice.
Rice and chicken...NO
Rice and vegetables...NOPE
Rice casserole... NO, the Whittaker's had Brown Rice for dinner. Just Rice.
 
Why? Well our friend Brian and his family started to make a change in this world and The Whittaker Team is on board. Here is what caught my heart on Brian's blog,
" I don’t know how much you have read about the global food crisis that is currently happening, but the need is massive and the poor are suffering. A combination of natural disasters, rising oil prices, and a reduction in staple food items like rice are ravaging families who were already struggling to buy food for their family. Because of these factors inflation has kicked in and caused food prices to soar over the past few months. This rise in food prices triggered the recent outbreak of violence in Haiti and in Bangladesh the cost of a kilo of rice went from $.31 to $.56 in less than 3 months. Most of these families living in poverty earn less than $2 per day and most of them are skipping meals because of the increase in costs.
families affected by this crisis. I will write a weekly guide for each week with stories from these countries and their specific needs so we can end that weekly meal praying for those in that specific country."

Brian goes on to share how his family is going to make a difference...
"As a family we have committed to do something small that can make a big difference in the lives of families very much like us around the world. Here is our plan:

1) Take 10% of our food budget each week and give that money directly to the Compassion Food Crisis Fund. We have $300 budgeted for each week on all food/restaurant/vegetable co-op related items and we will give $30 each week to help these families.

2) Spend one meal a week eating rice and learning about the different countries and families affected by this crisis. I will write a weekly guide for each week with stories from these countries and their specific needs so we can end that weekly meal praying for those in that specific country."

And that is what we are doing. Now this is his families plan. Our budget is different than theirs, so we adjust. That is not the point. The point is to stop and take a stand. One meal a week for the sake of another humans life. Really its not a question for us.

So tonight we focused on Haiti. We looked at pictures of the country and how people live their lives. We talked about the lack of food and why, and finally while we ate, we prayed for them. Compassion has a link on their site that gives specific prayer requests! We are excited about it. I look forward to learning about the other countries in the weeks to come.  
Anyone willing to give up flavorful meal for a bowl of rice?

Comments

[jen harris]

awesome! my family is in.

[Shanda]

This goes along with everything God has been teaching me. I even told a friend a few days ago that I would like to take one night a week and eat what someone in another country might eat. And take time to learn about that country with my kids. It's great to hear about like-minded individuals.

[connor]

i may have to actually set myself a food budget now, so that i can contribute to this... this is a cool idea...

your getting through these you ask i'l answer posts rightly... (is that a bit of an irish phrase?)

but i'm going travelling for 2 months next week, so i'l miss loads while I'm away.. there's been no answer to my question yet either... i'd hate to miss it while i was away... lol

[kristy]

Like you said there's really no question why we shouldn't do this. I'll sign my family up.

[Angela]

Beautiful! My family of 5 is in! Thank you for the inspiration.

[Rebecca Moon]

SO awesome. what a great idea!

[kim]

I love this. Thank you. We're going to find a way to do this.

[mrs. bear]

We miss you guys too!

[Amy (Dandelion Seeds)]

Love it! We'll be doing this too... we are a family of nine. Will be great for homeschooling too!

[Stephanie]

I think this is a great idea. A great way to actually feel like you're doing something when you can't actually be present for the people who are truly affected by the rise of food costs to help. I'm all for it.

[erin]

i am in :)

[jenn]

I think this is a great way to teach children about being thankful and also make them aware that so many people are suffering. I want to talk to my husband but I am pretty sure we are in.

[Gretchen]

awesome idea. I just got back from Haiti what a neat way to teach your kids about this stuff.

[shelley]

Great idea. I linked this post today. We have two boys adopted from Ethiopia and have been keeping up and teaching them. I love how simple their minds work-my 5 years old were scheming how to send milk on a plane!

[Danae]

Heather, you've inspired us to do the same thing. We've been wondering what to do about the food crisis and this idea is perfect. Steve hates rice, so it might work against him on the muffintop challenge, since he's trying to gain weight. Of course, most of the world doesn't have the luxury of worrying about weight & fitness challenges. Thanks.

[Amy]

I love brown rice would love to do this!

[Jenn]

Awesome idea! I'm going to talk to the hubby about doing it...

[Jamie Ivey]

very cool.
we're in too ... anyhow .. we're adopting two kids from haiti. i'm sure we'll keep up our rice tradition for a long time after they're home!!! They love rice!

[Soliloquy]

Talk about a blog with PURPOSE?!

Way to make an impact....

[Texas in Africa]

Awesome idea! I teach a little girls' missions class at church. One of the things we've done that might be effective with your girls is talk about how in Zambia (and many other African and other countries), little girls are the ones responsible for carrying all the family's water for the day. Our girls were shocked to learn that this means that many girls can't go to school. I think that lesson affected them more than anything else we'd covered in awhile. Next time I want to have them try to carry buckets of water that are equal to their weight without losing a drop, just so they really get the idea. But that might be a safety issue...

[RickyG]

Thanks for the love.
I miss your cooking!!!

[Amy]

Hi Heather,
Right this very moment I am in Los Cedros, Nicaragua on a mission trip at an infant orphanage. Yesterday we went to the city dump to feed about 250-300 starving Nicaraguan children. These beautiful people are living in the worst of poverty. The prices are soaring and the people are simply doing without. The utter delight on the faces of these children at being offered the love of God, our love, and a very healthy portion of filling arroz con pollo and a fistful of candy was one of the most rewarding heart wrenching feelings I have ever felt. My heart goes out to these children and I will stand with you and your family to help stop hunger. It's hard to believe if you've never seen it 1st hand.

[sunny]

This is a GREAT idea! We are going to do this. I think I will blog about it too.

[jessica]

yes.

[Jess]

This is awesome.

I was challenged because I thought, "that'll be great to do when our kids are older." Then i realized that it is ridiculous to wait. I think we'll start tonight.

Thanks for sharing this!

[Faith]

My husband and I are the grandparent of two beautiful, healthy, happy and well fed babies. In gratitude for our grandbabies' well being we will be having rice for dinner one night per week and sending a portion of our food budget somewhere in the world to feed two children. Thanks for helping grow this worthy project.